Gas-lighter.



(No Modei.)

A. SIMONINI.

G A S L l G H T E R.

(Application flied. May 28, 1900.)

Patented Mar. I9, 1901.

[N VENTOR'.

ANGELO SIMONINI, OF BROOKLYN, NEl/V YORK.

GAS-LIGHTER.

SPEGIFIOATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 670,334, dated March19, 190i.

7 Application filed May 28,1900. Serial No. 18,276. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

lle it known that I, ANGELO SIHONINI, a subject of the Emperor ofAustria-Hungary, residing in Brooklyn, in the county of Kings and Stateof New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Gas-Lighters, of which the followingis aspecificallOll.

proved lighter for gases, the construction, composition, and operationof which will be hereinafter set forth, reference being had to theaccompanying drawings, wherein Figure l is a perspective view of theigniter complete; Fig. 2, a similar view showing the threads or strandsthereof, and Fig. 3 a perspective view of one of the strands.

The primary object of my present invention is to produce an active andstable selfigniter for gases, while the specific object is theproduction of a highly superior igniter proper and also a similarintermediate heater.

The invention in its breadth comprises a preliminary heater of anysuitable form and a secondary heater and igniter consisting in part orin whole of threads or webbing or other fibrous bodies impregnated witha solution of rare earth or earths, together with platinum chlorid orany metal of the platinum group. The percentage of the component partsvaries with its use, the secondary heater havipg a bigh percentage ofplatinum c'li'l'orid say from ten "m twentyfive per cent.whereas in thecase of the igniter the percentage of platinum present is quite low, notexceeding, say, one and one-half per cent., and in many cases may belower.

The effect of platinum chlorid mixed with rare earth is as follows, themixture being absorbed by a fibrous body and afterward ashed or burnedout: An addition of twentyfive per cent. or more of platinum chlorid tothe rare earth enablesthe combination to pro duce a glow if placed inthe patnofpnngteu ai'i and "combustible gas. If less than ten per cent.of platinum chlorid is used the combination does not produce a glowunless preliminarily heated. Lessening the percentage of platinumchlorid to one per cent. or to one-half of one percent. it will be foundthat the glow, though traveling slower, becomes brighter and thetemperature much higher,

My present invention pertains to an imand in the use of ninety-nine andone-half per cent. of thorium nitrate and one-half of one per cent. ofplatinum chlorid the compound will readily ignite the gas ifpreliminarily heated.

Instead of thorium nitrateI may use other rare elementsas, forvinstance, zirconium nitrate, lanthanum nitrate, or a mixture of two ormore nitratesa very effective mixture for an igniter consisting ofninety-eight and one-half per cent. thorium nitrate, one per cent.cerium nitrate, and one-half of one per cent. platinum chlorid.

In carrying out my invention I make use of a preliminary heatersuch, forinstance, as a pill or pellet A, composed mainly of platin um black,which is capable of and does glow when placed in the path of mingled airand gas, as is well understood.

A secondaryor intermediate heater is built up in the following manner: Athread B,having woven or otherwise secured in it a platinum wire, istreat-ed with a solution of thorium nitrate and platinum chlorid, theproportions varying from seventy-five, to ninety per cent. of thoriumnitrateand from twentytlve to ten per cent. of platinum chlorid. Inconnection with the thread so treated there are employed two or morethreads C, having platinum wire embodied in them, which are impregnatedwith a solution of platinum chlorid alone. It is manifest that afterashing these threads the platinum wire is left covered by a coating ofspongy or porous platinum.

The igniter proper is composed of two or more threads D, which aretreated with a solution comprising approximately thorium nitrateninety-eight and one-half per cent., cerium nitrate one per cent., andplatinum chlorid one-half of one per cent. The threads thus treated aresecured togetherin conjunction with the preliminary heater A, the Wholebeing supported or carried by any suitable device which will properlyhold them in the path of the issuing gas, as is well understood. Thethreads are of course ashed, changing the nitrates into oxids, as isusual.

The operation of the lighter thus described is as follows: Thepreliminary heater A glows and transfers the glow to the thread B,Which,owing to the high percentage of platinum chlorid added to the rareeartlnglows from end to end at a relatively low temperature,transmitting said glow in turn to the threads 0, consisting of platinumwire and very porous metallic platinum. Said threads C glow at asomewhat higher temperature than threads B. The glow from threads C istransmitted to and taken up by the threads D, which become highlyincandescent and ignite the gas. It is owing to the relatively lowpercentage of finely-divided platinum present in said threads D thatthey become sohighly heated. From this it will be seen that there is agradual building up oraccretion of temperature from the preliminaryheater through the component parts of the intermediate heater to theigniter. It is also a fact to be noted that where a large percentage ofplatinum is employed the glow travels quickly from end to end of thethread with a low resultant temperature, while, as in the case of theigniter, where a very small percentage of platinum is present, thetemperature is high, but the glow does not travel so fast.

While the composition and arrangement just described give mostsatisfactory results, still I do not desire to be understood as limitingmy invention strictly thereto. In some instances the percentage ofplatinum chlorid present may be as low as one-fourth of one per cent.

It is to be noted that the lighter herein described is independent ofand distinct from any mantle, although it may be used for igniting thecombined air and gas passing into a mantle.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is 1. A lighter for gasor vapors comprising a preliminary heater; an intermediate heatercomposed of a body of fibrous material impregnated with a solution ofrare earth and platinum chlorid, the platinum chlorid being present insuch quantity as to produce a glow when the body is heated, andasecondfibrous body carrying or supportinga platinum wire and treated with asolution of platinum chlorid; and an igniter consisting of a fibrousbody impregnated with a solution of rare earth and platinum chlorid, theplatinum chlorid being present in a percentage not to exceed one andone-half per cent.

2. A secondary heater for lighters for gas and vapors, consisting of afibrous body impregnated with a solution of rare earth and platinumchlorid, the chlorid being present in a percentage not less than ten percent; and a second fibrous body or bodies carrying or supportingplatinum wire, which body or bodies are treated witha solution ofplatinum chlorid.

3. A lighter for gases or vapors consisting of a preliminary heater; anintermediate heater comprising thread B having a platinum wire embeddedtherein and treated with a solution of thorium nitrate and platinumchlorid in substantially the proportions specified; a secondary heaterconsisting of threads C carrying or supporting platinum wires, saidthreads being treated with a solution of platinum chlorid; and anigniter comprising a fibrous body impregnated with a solution consistingsubstantially of ninety-eight per cent. thorium nitrate, one per cent.cerium'nitrate, and one per cent. platinum chlorid.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in thepresence of two subscribing witnesses.

ANGELO SIMONINI. Witnesses:

GEO. L. WILLIAMS, P. A. CONSTANTINE.

